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Cat Confessions: Body Language Training for Humans!

I have decided I need to do some “body language training” with Human. It isn’t easy communicating my desires to Human, bless her heart. She just doesn’t always seem to understand me.

I realize when one has a mouth and can talk, that communicating with posture,behavior, one’s tail, ears and eyes may be foreign. Body language is a whole language in itself. So I am working hard to train her to understand my efforts to signal to her. Boy, sometimes I wish I could write!

Oh, my name is Norie. I am a black cat with thick luxurious short hair. I have a friend, named “Sister,” who has gray and black stripes and the oddest white legs. She has simpler needs than I do and doesn’t have the complexity of intelligence that I have so she has fewer problems.

Back to the subject: There is a cabinet where Human keeps treats for Sister and I. Human knows that I love these treats. So every time she goes to that area of the kitchen, I come running!

I walk back and forth and rub against her legs and she knows I want a treat.

She says I am like a little shark (whatever that is!). I simply do not understand why she would call me that! After all, who would want to miss a treat?? Right?

Unfortunately she doesn’t give me a treat every time I demonstrate these behaviors. I know she thinks she is trying to keep me from getting fat, but she doesn’t know how I keep slim by chasing Sister around and then of course, there is the red light on the floor to chase after.

So this evening, I was walking back and forth, rubbing against Human’s feet and legs to tell her I wanted her to hold me and love on me some, but only for a brief time. Unlike Sister, I don’t want to be stroked and held for an hour at a time! Human kept ignoring me. (I wonder why she would be confused??) until she finally decided to pick me up. Yea!! A breakthrough! Human sat down with me in her lap and rubbed my chin and stroked my nose and talked lovingly to me. I was so happy, until I wanted down.

That’s when the trouble began. Now I don’t want to interrupt that kind of loving by just getting up suddenly, so I started swishing my tail back and forth, faster and harder, trying to tell her I was bored. She tried stroking my back, thinking that I wanted my back petted. She was wrong. I still love her anyway, but it is frustrating to know what I want, but not be able to get the message across quickly and efficiently.

When I spread my ears apart and flatten them, she has learned this means I am getting impatient or tired of the present situation.

I used to act like I was going to nip at her hand at this point but she seemed upset when I did, so I stopped this. I wouldn’t hurt her on purpose. I do want to continue good will with Human. Human does, after all, love me, feed me, clean my litter box, and shines the red light on the floor so I can chase it and get my exercise.

So I am slowly conditioning her to put me down when I start swishing my tail around, instead of waiting for my ears to flatten out of irritation at her slowness to understand. I have to be patient. Maybe someday she will have my language figured out.

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Elaine

I love stories and legends, whether they be educational, humourous, silly or touching. I grew up on the fairy tales and later grew to love legends from different times and different cultures. Find other stories and legends from Elaine, by visiting her own blog “joyful2bee“. All my articles.

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